Be Part of the Pioneer Legacy

Every member of the Church shares a pioneer heritage even if he or she doesn’t have any Mormon pioneer ancestors.

This month we celebrate the arrival of the first pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. They sacrificed and suffered in order to be able to worship.

Church leaders have called on us to carry on their legacy of faith.

“We are all needed to finish the work that was begun by those pioneering Saints,” said Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the October 2008 general conference.

“The Lord isn’t asking us to load up a handcart; He’s asking us to fortify our faith. He isn’t asking us to walk across a continent; He’s asking us to walk across the street to visit our neighbor. He isn’t asking us to give all of our worldly possessions to build a temple; He’s asking us to … attend regularly the temples already built. He isn’t asking us to die a martyr’s death; He’s asking us to live a disciple’s life.”

Here are a few ways you can commemorate the sacrifices of the pioneers this month and carry on their legacy: